South Haven, MI, is one of those lovely Lake Michigan communities full of summer people and has a great tourist base as well as a tight knit year round community. It has traditionally held an art fair on the first Sunday of July. Artists in the know would go to Saugatuck (MI), a nearby community for Saturday and then pack up and head to South Haven for Sunday. After 56 years the South Haven Center for the Arts has decided to listen to requests and turn their show into a two day event.
This is a good turn of events for people who have gotten tired of the set up on Saturday, tear down at the end of the day and set up again on Sunday, etc... drill.
Is this good news for Saugatuck? What do you think? Do you do these back to back events?
Here is the news story: http://www.heraldpalladium.com/news/local/double-days-for-south-haven-s-art-fair/article_201927c3-0969-5ac5-959f-543b88c46019.html
Replies
South Haven is one of those easy to do shows because most spaces have room for artists to park behind their booths. If turning it into a 2 day show means you can't park behind your booth in the park, or getting the same amount attendance just split up into two days, certainly won't help the show survive. And both South Haven and Saugatuck will have to think hard about what they're doing because except for local artists, anyone driving more than a few hours counted on both shows to make it a decent weekend. Some years one show was better and some years the other was the better show.
Maybe with South Haven at two days, Saugatuck might think of moving to the Friday or Monday depending on when July fourth falls.
But in reality looking at the bigger picture, the two day move by South Haven might kill the weekend for both shows. I'd be curious to see the reviews for the next year or two.
Larry Berman
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100
Did you read the article, Larry? This could kill Saugatuck and/or be good for people who travel or spend the summer on the Lake Michigan shore using it as a base. This is truly "up in the air" and it will be interesting to see how it plays out. We often thought of doing this "two-fer" but never had the enthusiasm for it as there were so many other choices on that weekend.